Warriors fight to determine Southern region’s ruler

Sunday

Oct 12, 2008 at 12:01 AMOct 12, 2008 at 1:40 AM

By Jamon SmithStaff Writer

COTTONDALE |The medieval Russian warrior Iastreb Desislavich, stepped into a grassy clearing squared off with rope and surrounded by flag-topped tents. He lifted his red and yellow tape-wrapped rattan sword and shield in a salute to his medieval Celtic warrior opponent, Madach Macadhol.Desislavich and Macadhol are characters in the Society for Creative Anachronism, an international educational organization that conducts historical re-enactments of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Both warriors had fought hard Saturday, vanquishing four opponents each for personal glory and for the honor of their ladies, who stood outside the arena cheering them on.The warriors were familiar with each other’s fighting styles because they had crossed swords before on numerous battlegrounds.But today, their hard-won respect for one another had to be put aside. Because besides fighting for their ladies’ honor, the prize for winning the tournament was the greatest in the Kingdom of Meridies — the Southern region.The winner of the tournament that started with 32 fighters Saturday morning, would be crowned heir to the Meridies throne, and inevitably king of the land once the current king’s standard six-month rule was complete.Loud cheers bombarded the area. The tense silence the two warriors shared as they sized each other up was shattered as the match began.The two circled each other.Macadhol’s movements were a bit swifter than Desislavich’s. He wore lightweight protection in contrast to his opponent’s heavy armor.Desislavich attacked first. He missed.Macadhol danced just out of reach of the sword swipe Desislavich aimed for his legs and immediately counterattacked with a side slash that struck Desislavich’s sword arm.Now, having to continue the fight with only one arm, Desislavich dropped his shield and switched his sword to his working right arm.The adjustment cost him. Macadhol struck quickly, slashing again at Desislavich’s now defenseless dangling left arm.With no sword or shield in Desislavich’s left hand to intercept the blow, the hit counted as a torso strike, a death blow.The Russian warrior fell. His glory, his lady’s honor and his chance at becoming heir all lost in less than 60 seconds.“I got hit in the arm twice, which counted as a death blow,” Desislavich, who’s real name is Mike Myers, said after the fight. “I went for a leg shot, and he went for an arm shot at the same time. He was faster and struck first and moved out of the way.” “He’s good,” Myers said. “I’ve been doing this for about five years, and he’s been fighting for about 20.”Myers is a 34-year-old high school physics teacher from Maryville, Tenn. On Saturday, at Camp Horn in Cottondale, the Southern United States region of the SCA, called the Kingdom of Meridies, held a medieval combat tournament to determine who would be the new king and queen of the region.Brian “Baron Alexander Ravencroft” Moore, one of the tournament’s organizers, said new kings in SCA regions are determined through double elimination combat tournaments. The man, or woman, who wins the tournament is then named king or queen of the region after the current king or queen’s term has expired, which is six months. The spouse of the heir to the throne — the tournament winner — becomes the queen, or king if a woman wins the tournament.“The fighting in this is a modified recreation of historical sword fighting,” Moore said. “Instead of using real blades, we’re using rattan ones because when it breaks, it pulps instead of splinters and causes less damage to the person getting hit.“We also wear various forms of real medieval armor, from leather to metal plate mail,” he said. “Plate mail is the heaviest and gives the most protection, but it’s also the most expensive, costing about $2,000 average where chain mail costs about $800.”Since each combatant in the SCA tournament is trained on how to give blows and take them — head and body shots count as death blows while arm and leg shots sever that appendage but don’t kill the person being struck — the protective qualities of the armor used doesn’t really matter.Moore said that the armor choice a combatant makes is more about his or her individual style, or which style of armor, if any, their character would have worn.“The armor does allow us to hit harder and have a good time, but not get so damaged that we can’t work on Monday,” Moore said. “We all have regular jobs.”Myers said fighting in the tournaments is a real sport and the bouts aren’t choreographed.“You’re out there competing,” Myers said. “You have to practice to win at this like any other sport. The more you practice the better you are.”Myers said he practices about once a week.After the tournament was over and the heir was crowned, the group, which numbered about 200, danced and enjoyed a medieval-style feast of oven-cooked meats, cheeses, bread and fruits.

Reach Jamon Smith at jamon.smith@tuscaloosanews.com or 205-722-0204.

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